Research findings

Exciting new evidence for an effective therapeutic intervention for older adopted children – read the press release about our 2019 research paper here. The research was published in the Journal of Child Abuse & Neglect, November 2019, and provides supporting evidence that a therapeutic intervention which is neuro-developmental and holistic in approach improved outcomes for children who had experienced developmental trauma and who had later been placed for adoption.

Key findings of Family Futures’ 2019 research:

Results from psychological screening questionnaires indicated:

• There was a significant difference between the treatment and control groups’ executive functioning. Executive functioning refers to abilities to self-regulate, manage information, make decisions and plan ahead. The treatment group made significant improvements on the Global Executive Composite (a total executive functioning score), Behavioral Regulation Index and Metacognition Index domains of the Behavioral Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF), whilst the control group continued to present with the same levels of executive functioning difficulties that they had at assessment.

• Children who received the NPP model presented with significantly less total emotional and behavioural problems and Externalizing Behaviours as measured by the Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL) at re-test and compared to the control group, who again continued to present with the same level of difficulties that they had at assessment.

• Whilst children who received the NPP model showed significant improvements in global mental health difficulties common in children in alternate care, composite self-esteem and negative self-image, as measured by the Assessment Checklist for Children (ACC) the control group continued to present with the same difficulties and in some cases these difficulties had worsened over time.